Sometimes Hugs Are Better Than Handshakes
by iloveromance
Summary: Christmas of 1962 is starting out to be the worst ever as Niles agonizes over his mother's Christmas gift. But the real gift is what he receives in return.


He may have only been five years old, but he couldn't have been prouder of the brightly wrapped box with the huge bow that sat underneath the Christmas tree. Out of the hundreds of presents that they had opened that Christmas morning, only two remained; the two that his mother annoyed she was saving for last.

"Open mine first!" Niles begged, knowing full well that it would never happen. "Please, Mom!"

"Niles!"

Niles didn't have to turn his head to feel the wrath of his father's stern glare. It was a ritual that the Crane family had gone through twice; no… three times a year for the past four years and it always caused friction between the Crane brothers.

Well, Niles couldn't remember the first two years and barely remembered the third but he was pretty sure that it had happened then, as well.

Birthdays, Christmas… it was all the same when it came to gift-giving. Niles and Frasier had been competing over whose gift their mom or dad should open first for as long as Niles could remember. The competition always started with angry glares at one another and almost always ended with shouting matches and being sent to their rooms. But soon after, their mother would ask them to return to be with the family so that they could share in the gift giving.

Frasier, being the older brother, always had the privilege of picking out his own present with his own money, earned by doing odd chores for the neighbors and he made sure that his parents knew about it. In turn, he'd garnered extra praise, a sight Niles hated to see.

Time and again, Niles begged his father to take him shopping to the fancy downtown Seattle department store, Frederick and Nelson, the way he had taken Frasier, but his father always deemed him "too young" to go downtown to such a big store. And so Niles had to settle for a gift from the Five and Dime store on Sycamore Street. Fortunately his parents never objected to his choice of gifts.

But this year was different. He was five years old and finally old enough to make his own money. To his father (and Frasier's) dismay, Niles had started his own business; a lemonade stand with a twist. Instead of selling lemonade, he sold advice, just like in the Peanuts comics. Hey, if it was good enough for Lucy Van Pelt, it was good enough for Niles Crane. He didn't know much but the people who walked down the street were intrigued by his set up and stopped to ask him advice about practically everything and anything, after which they gave him money; and lots of it. Soon he had earned his age; five whole dollars. It was enough to buy his mom something that he knew she would absolutely love.

One Saturday after showing his father the money he'd earned, they had climbed into the car and headed, of all places downtown to the illusive Frederick and Nelson Department store. But amazingly Niles didn't see anything that he thought his mother would like. So on the way home, he begged his father to stop at another store; a much smaller one not far from their home. His father grumbled, but did as Niles asked.

Proudly Niles walked into the store and with his shopping basket in hand gathered the things he needed;' all the while enduring his father's pestering questions. None of which he could answer.

When they returned home, Niles spent every precious moment alone in the bedroom that he shared with Frasier, much to the annoyance of his family; especially Frasier. But Niles didn't care. He was creating a masterpiece.

* * *

Now he watched with wide eyes as the family sat around the Christmas tree, willing his mother to open his gift first. But he knew what would happen before he even opened his mouth. A sense of déjà vu came over him, his eyes moving to his mother's arm, watching her reach under the tree for her son's gifts. He already knew which one would be chosen first but he tried not to let it upset him.

His mother picked up what was most certainly Frasier's gift; a large, lavishly wrapped box in sparkling red, green, silver and blue paper, tied with a huge gold bow. It was clearly a gift that was wrapped by the gift-wrapping experts at Frederick and Nelson. And Niles didn't even want to know how much it cost. Probably more than it would cost to give advice to every person in the world.

Then she pulled out Niles gift. The box, which was too large for the gift, was wrapped haphazardly in faded blue and silver paper; the only paper he could reach on the shelf, and a bow that was tied way too tight. He knew just from looking at it now that his mother would never be able to untie it. And once again he was filled with shame. But he would not cry. He simply would not.

"So whose are you going to open first, Mom?" Frasier shouted. "You should open mine first because I'm the oldest! Niles is just a baby!"

"I AM NOT!" Niles shouted, enunciating each word. "I'm _this many_!" he held up his small hand, wiggling his fingers back and forth. But to his dismay everyone laughed, even his mom. And then his worst nightmare began to come true.

"You're absolutely right, Frasier. You are the oldest, so why don't we open yours first? Oh my, what pretty paper! It's almost too pretty to open!"

Niles was delighted at that prospect, but only for a moment. He knew that she would open it regardless.

"All right, should I open it, Marty?"

"Absolutely." His father said. "I'm dying to see what's in it!"

When Frasier flashed a celebratory smile, while Niles simply glared back. Why did everything good always happen to Frasier? Nothing ever went Niles' way, even on Christmas. He couldn't bring himself to look at his mother and instead stared at the Christmas tree. But the twinkling lights and colorful decorations did little to draw his mind away from the sound of crinkling paper and the gasp of obvious delight. "Oh Frasier, it's lovely!"

"Try it on!" his father was coaxing.

Slowly Niles turned his head and instantly wished that he hadn't. If he hadn't turned his head, he wouldn't have seen the long red wool coat that his mother was holding.

"Picked it out himself!" His father was saying proudly.

"Frasier, where on earth did you get the money to buy something like this for me?"

"He earned it!" His father said with a wink and a smile. Yep, Frasier had earned it all right. He'd probably promised his father a game of football ball outside where his dad would teach him how to make a touchdown; whatever that was. And his father had fronted him the money. Niles might have been young, but he certainly wasn't stupid.

"This is…" She could barely finish as she hugged Frasier tightly, a sight that Niles had rarely seen. After all, a handshake was as good as a hug, according to Hester Crane.

"What, Mom? What is it?"

"The best present ever. Thank you, Frasier."

Engulfed in his mother's arms, Frasier gave Niles a sly grin, making Niles fume. And the look of triumph on his older brother's face did not go unnoticed by his father. But apparently his father also saw Niles face.

"Um, Hester, why don't you open Niles' present now?"

His mother gasped. "Oh heavens, of course! I'm sorry, Niles! I got so wrapped up in opening Frasier's gift and the surprise of this beautiful coat that I almost forgot!"

Frasier began to laugh, long and loud. " _Wrapped up_? That's a good one mom! Did you hear her, Dad? _Wrapped up_?"

"Shut up, Fras!" His father yelled. Surprisingly their mother did not scold their father the way she usually did.

Again Niles scowled at his infuriating older brother (the only real friend he had), but his annoyance soon disappeared when he saw his mother holding the box wrapped in blue and silver paper. When Niles frowned, she smiled. "Oh this is nice, Niles! What pretty paper!"

"Thanks." He muttered, barely able to look at her. He could hear her struggling to untie the bow and the familiar sound of his father's hand reaching into his pocket for his Swiss Army knife.

"Here, let me see that." His father said gruffly as he struggled to open the box with his hands. "Boy, Niles you sure did a number on this ribbon, didn't you?"

"Marty, just cut it will ya?"

"Don't talk like that in front of the boys!"

"I meant the ribbon, honey!"

"Oh, right." Sheepishly their father grinned and snipped the ribbon apart and then his mother eagerly took the box and began to peel back the paper, revealing the box that was much too big for what lay inside. But it was the best he could do. She folded the tissue paper back and stared into the box. Her expression was unreadable as she lifted the lid and removed the gift.

From where he was sitting, Niles could see the back of his creation, praying that his mother would like it. But he wasn't prepared for what happened next.

"Oh my… this is…" And then she began to cry.

Immediately his father took notice and went to comfort her. "Hester? Honey, what's wrong?"

Niles watched, crestfallen.

"I-I just… I can't believe he did this!" His mother said tearfully. And his father shook his head.

"Neither can I." His father said. "Niles has done some pretty unbelievable things in his life but this…"

Niles bit his lip to keep it from trembling, hoping that it wouldn't draw blood. He hated to get sick on Christmas Day. But truthfully he'd much rather be sick in bed than watching his mother cry. And Niles' tears were dangerously close to the surface. He wouldn't dare cry in front of his brother. He just couldn't. He'd already been humiliated enough for one Christmas.

Shame and guilt overwhelmed him. "You hate it!" he yelled, unable to stop himself. "I knew it! Frasier's presents are always better than mine! Always! He'll always be better than me and it's not fair!"

"Niles, don't yell at your mother like that!" His father yelled. "It's _Christmas_!"

That's all it took for Niles to burst into tears. He didn't care who was watching him; not his brother or father or even Santa Claus (if there really was one; he hadn't yet finished his research into the subject), and even if they were, it didn't matter.

He could hear his father yelling at him to stop crying and the mumbled words of his brother, but Niles chose to ignore them all.

But it was his mother's sudden presence beside him that stole his attention. He looked up as his mother knelt beside him, holding his gift in her hands. "Niles, honey did you make this?"

His eyes met hers and he nodded. "Yes, but…"

"But what? Why are you crying?"

Niles lowered his head. "Because you like Frasier's present better than mine!"

"Niles-."

"I don't have enough money to buy you a pretty coat so I made you something instead."

She smiled. "I can see that. It's beautiful, Niles; so many different colors."

"But it's not as good as what Frasier got you."

His mother glanced at his father and nodded before returning her attention to Niles. She turned the gift around so that Niles could see it. Instantly he recognized the large sheet of construction paper that was covered with hundreds of tiny pieces of every color of the rainbow. And across it he could see the carefully written letters in bold blue, green, red and purple crayons.

"This is the most beautiful thing I've ever received, Niles."

Niles gasped, unable to believe what he was hearing. "It is?"

"Yes, all the pretty colors and designs. You worked really hard on this. No wonder you always rushed off after dinner."

Niles pouted. "But it's not as good as what Frasier gave you."

"Well, the coat is nice and it will certainly come in handy." His mother admitted. "But do you see what you wrote here?"

Niles eyes moved back to the letters he'd written. " _Good for one hug from Niles_." he read.

"That's right."

"But you don't like hugs!" Niles protested. You always say-."

"You're right, Niles. But this is different. May I use it now?"

Niles eyes widened. "Really? You really want to?"

His mother opened her arms, allowing Niles to fling himself into them. She gave him the biggest, warmest, tightest hug he'd ever had. He was so happy that he felt like crying, but he didn't. And when she let go, he smiled at her. "So you really like it, Mom?"

To his stunned amazement, she kissed his cheek. "Niles Crane this is the best present I could have ever received from anyone."

"It is?"

"Yes, and do you know why?"

"No…"

"Because I'm going to use this every day, at least once. Is that okay?"

Niles nodded, feeling strangely triumphant.

"May I use it again right now?"

He grinned. "Yes."

The second hug was even better than the first and when Niles looked up he saw his brother standing next to his father. Both of them were smiling.

But it was Niles who was the happiest when he saw his older brother give him the thumbs-up sign and say; "Well played, Niles. Well played."

 **THE END**


End file.
